Thank you for taking the…

Thank you for taking the time to consider the falconry community’s request to modify the current wild take regulations. I would like to take this opportunity to express my support for these wild take changes.

The Ontario Hawking Club has worked hard to provide this opportunity to all Ontario falconers. The OHC is also dedicated to ensuring the wild populations of our indigenous raptors stay strong. It is involved in nest box creation and monitoring of our declining American Kestrel populations and takes an active role in monitoring Goshawk breeding throughout the province. We understand that without healthy, wild raptor populations we cannot possibly hope to continue or further wild take in Ontario. Fragmented forests, urban sprawl and concrete jungles pose very real obstacles for our native wildlife. The centuries old practice of wild take by falconers helps young raptors gain the experience to survive and thrive in this landscape. In return, we enjoy the privilege of working with them for a winter and watching them grow to their full potential.

The high mortality rate of first year raptors is thrown about quite often as a reason to allow wild take in some form and I stand behind this, particularly when the raptors in question are released back to the wild the following spring. This type of wild take is only of benefit to the high number of raptors that would have met their fates overwinter; all juveniles without territories or mates. Those juveniles used for the falconry hunting season are trained to peak condition and returned to the wild healthier and experienced.

Counterintuitively, removing the draw and giving all Ontario falconers the opportunity to hunt with a wild juvenile from one of the designated species should benefit the wild populations. This is simply because currently, with the uncertainty of yearly approval, many falconers hold onto their hunting partners. This means wild caught birds are often not released the following spring. Without that uncertainty, expect more falconers to release their charges, benefitting both the falconer, who no longer has to feed and house the bird through summer and the raptor population, which regains a now fit subadult. Without the draw, the falconer simply traps a new juvenile come autumn and begins the process anew.

Most Ontario falconers hold either General or Apprentice licenses and as such, can only legally keep up to three indigenous raptors on their permits at once. We cannot sell, breed or commercially exploit them. Raptors obtained by wild take permit are strictly hunting companions.

Finally I remind those reading this that falconers have no intention of overharvesting any raptor species. Doing such a thing in no way benefits us. We all love watching wild raptors be free and are excited to be involved in helping even more young birds through their first winters. This is the 4000 year old tradition of falconry and we look forward to this new chapter with MNRF.